(Washington) Washington on Saturday called on Serbia to release “immediately” and “unconditionally” three Kosovar police officers whose detention has exacerbated tensions between Belgrade and Pristina.
“We call on President (Aleksandar) Vucic and the Serbian government to immediately and unconditionally release three Kosovar police officers detained since June 14,” said Matthew Miller, spokesman for the US State Department.
“Their arrest and detention on spurious grounds has exacerbated an already tense situation,” he continued, calling on Serbia and Kosovo to resume talks under the aegis of the European Union.
Serbia announced on Wednesday that it had arrested three Kosovar police officers in military uniform, armed with automatic weapons, GPS, maps and other equipment.
The Kosovar authorities called the incident a kidnapping and banned Serb vehicles from crossing the border.
This new fit of fever comes after weeks of tension, during which thirty soldiers of the force led by NATO in Kosovo (Kfor) were injured in May during clashes with Serb demonstrators.
Serbia, supported by its Russian and Chinese allies, has never recognized the independence proclaimed in 2008 by its former province, a decade after a deadly war between Serbian forces and Albanian separatist rebels.
Kosovo has a population of 1.8 million, the vast majority of whom are Albanians. The Serbian minority remains largely loyal to Belgrade and refuses to recognize the sovereignty of Pristina. Kosovo Serbs are accused by some of being instrumentalized by Serbia.
The head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell has invited the Serbian president and the prime minister of Kosovo next week to Brussels to try to ease tensions.